While I do agree that there are certain books in the world that are not appropriate in the classroom, I don't think that this pertains to the Harry Potter series. I personally think that the Harry Potter series does an excellent job at teaching important values, such as friendship, loyalty, and the difference between right and wrong. I love the fact that the characters in this book make numerous mistakes, because that is human. Everyone makes mistakes. By making these mistakes, the characters learn numerous life lessons, and I think that it is refreshing to read that just because a person makes a mistake, it doesn't mean that their life is ruined. Learning from mistakes is part of life and it helps us grow, and I think that children need to know that.
I think that the biggest misconception about the Harry Potter series is that they promote evil or witchcraft, but I believe that they promote the opposite. Harry Potter is a young boy who is thrown into a world that he never even knew existed, and along the way he is faced with great challenges and decisions. He could have easily turned into a darker character, but he chooses to use his moral fiber while making decisions for himself, and I think that he is a great examle of a good person to readers of all ages. As far as the controversy about the books promoting witchcraft goes, I don't understand it at all. Throughout the entire series, there are characters who choose to use their magic in a dark way, but Harry and his friends always choose to use their magic for good. I think that readers will be able to understand that Harry and his friends represent the right way of doing things rather than the wrong things. I can't recall a single time throughout the entire series that Harry, Ron, or Hermione used their magic for evil or for the wrong reasons.
I personally would love to use the Harry Potter series in my classroom because I think they promote important moral fiber and multilple life lessons. I think that this series should be allowed in classrooms because I think that students will be able to identify with multiple characters in the book. A student may have experienced a loss of a parent, like Harry, or they may be struggling with financial issues or poverty, like Ron. There are numerous ways that students may be able to identify with all sorts of characters from the book, and I think that students will find that very engaging.
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Lauren,
ReplyDeleteI agree with you about Harry Potter being a good book to teach values. Not only does the book show the character's desire to do good-it also shows their disobedience. The books always punish Potter and his friends for their acts of disobedience. This gives students a chance to see the right and wrong way to do things. It also shows students that their are consequences to their disobedience,
I agree with you about Harry Potter. It is a great book and students love to read it. I think that if a stuent is interested in something because it is fantsy than it is great.
ReplyDeleteYou make a great point! The book does teach important values but there are so many people that can't get past the magic part. I think it is great because it requires children to use their imagination in order to understand the book.
ReplyDeleteHarry Potter contains valid information for children. I think Harry Potter leans more postive for children than negative.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you completely. I like the way you look at the book as a whole rather than just focusing on certain aspects of the book.More people should be open minded when they consider books and their appropiateness.
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